Such are the stories that legends share of ‘The Von’ that it is easy to remember the character ahead of the accomplishments of Norman von Nida.

Whether giving bunker lessons to the likes of Gary Player and Peter Thomson or – with failing eyesight – instructing Nick Faldo to make a swing adjustment simply by listening to the sound the ball made on the clubface, von Nida’s impact on the game in this country was lengthy and varied.

From his days as a teenager caddying in Brisbane, von Nida regularly spent time amongst golf royalty.

He caddied for Walter Hagen at just 14 years of age and at 22 beat the newly crowned British Open champion Gene Sarazen after challenging him to a 50-pound winner-takes-all match.

Although small in stature, von Nida’s powerful arms propelled him to some 100 wins around the world and he was a trailblazer for Australians playing in Europe, encouraging golfers such as Thomson to also make the long journey to opportunity.

Although he had success prior to World War II – he was twice runner-up to Jim Ferrier in the 1938 and 1939 Australian Open – it would be when the war ended that von Nida became a dominant force in both Australia and Europe.

In 1947 he won seven times in Europe and on home soil was close to unbeatable in our major events.

Between 1946 and 1951 he won the Australian PGA Championship on four occasions – disposing of first Eric Cremin and then Ossie Pickworth 6&5 in the final in successive years in ’50 and ’51 and in a seven-year span between 1949 and 1955 either won or was runner-up at the Australian Open every year, Pickworth, Thomson and Bobby Locke the only men to deny him in that time.

A generation of Australian players – and even the great Jack Nicklaus – turned to ‘The Von’ for advice but above all else he showed that Australian golfers should never be afraid to pit their talents against the best the world could throw at them.

Like von Nida, Jones helped to establish a new frontier for Aussie golfers.

Born in Sydney, Jones won the Western Australian Open the year before turning professional in 1971 and would soon after forge a successful career throughout Asia.

He won the 1972 Indian Open – a title he would claim again five years later – but it was in Japan where he would find his greatest success.

The first of 11 individual titles in Japan came at the 1977 KBC Augusta tournament and he would amass close to Y470 million in career earnings in Japan alone, his final triumph in the Land of the Rising Sun recorded at the 1993 Sapporo Tokyu Open.

A winner of three PGA Tour of Australasia events, Jones’ came closest to claiming one of our most prestigious titles at the 1980 Australian Open.

The third-round leader, Jones led Greg Norman by a stroke with six holes to play at The Lakes Golf Club but bogeys at 15, 16 and 17 opened the door for Norman to go on and record a one-stroke win.

In this afternoon’s match, five-time US PGA Tour winner Marc Leishman goes up against famed Tiger tamer Nick O’Hern.

Yet to record a major victory on home soil, Leishman has established himself as one of our most consistent performers on the world stage and a regular member of the International team at the Presidents Cup.

The only player to defeat Tiger Woods twice in match play competition, O’Hern’s best year was in 2006 when he was top-10 at the US Open and won the Australian PGA Championship at Coolum by holing a bunker shot from the back of the 18th green at the second playoff hole.

Match 23 | @CocaColaAmatil Australia's Greatest Golfer ?️

Follow @PGAofAustralia & https://t.co/8tUxMHCgi8 to vote as we give you the chance to vote for our best Aussie in a decorated class of 64 greats.

— PGA of Australia (@PGAofAustralia) April 28, 2020

Norman von Nida
Career wins: 48
European Tour wins: 14
Australasian Tour wins: 32
Australian Open: Won (1950, 1952, 1953)
Australian PGA: Won (1946, 1948, 1950, 1951)

Brian Jones
Career wins: 21
Japan Tour wins: 11
Australasian Tour wins: 3
Australian Open: 2nd (1980)

Marc Leishman
Career wins: 12
PGA TOUR wins: 5
Australasian Tour wins: 4 (Von Nida Tour)
Australian Open: T10 (2019)
Australian PGA: 2nd (2018)

Nick O’Hern
Career wins: 5
Australasian Tour wins: 2
Australian Open: 2nd (1999, 2005, 2007)
Australian PGA: Won (2006)